Monday, November 02, 2015

I want to remind you all that I live in a country where 'socialism' is (unfortunately) not a dirty word. But even we know the difference between the Holocaust and the anti-Semitism that gave rise to it, and the imaginary phobia known as 'Islamophobia.'

But in one of the most emotional moments of the night, George Mason
University senior Remaz Abdelgader stood up and demanded to know how
Sanders would address the rising tide of Islamophobia in the U.S. Her
voice breaking, she spoke of how hurt she feels when she hears anti-Muslim rhetoric from other candidates for president — including GOP frontrunners Ben Carson, who has said he doesn’t want a Muslim as president of the U.S.

“Being an American is such a strong part of my identity, but I want
to create a change in this society,” she said. “I’m so tired of
listening to this rhetoric saying I can’t be president one day, that I
should not be in office. It makes me so angry and upset. This is my
country.”

Sanders insisted she join him on stage and gave her a hug as the crowd of a couple hundred stood and cheered.

Then, in response to her question, Sanders does something he rarely
does: he spoke personally about his Jewish faith and family history,
which includes losing relatives in the Holocaust, and said Americans
need to learn from that past. “If we stand for anything we have to stand
together and end all forms of racism in this country,” he said. “I will
lead that effort as president.”

It gets worse from there.

No people have been subject to greater amounts and more severe discrimination than Jews. Incidents of anti-Semitism throughout the West remain totally disproportionate to the number of Jews present in those countries. Comparing Holocaust level anti-Semitism to 'Islamophobia' is cheap populist grandstanding.

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About Me

I am an Orthodox Jew - some would even call me 'ultra-Orthodox.' Born in Boston, I was a corporate and securities attorney in New York City for seven years before making aliya to Israel in 1991 (I don't look it but I really am that old :-). I have been happily married to the same woman for thirty-five years, and we have eight children (bli ayin hara) ranging in age from 13 to 33 years and nine grandchildren. Four of our children are married! Before I started blogging I was a heavy contributor on a number of email lists and ran an email list called the Matzav from 2000-2004. You can contact me at: IsraelMatzav at gmail dot com